WASHINGTON, DC—On Monday February 23, dozens of musicians and independent cultural creators came together in a letter to Tom Wheeler, Chairman of the Federal Communications Commission, thanking him for moving forward with strong net neutrality rules, in advance of the Commission’s vote on February 26. read more

We write to you at a crucial moment for net neutrality, as we probably don’t have to remind you. We understand that your position can be thankless and that it is difficult to take a stand for what is right when there is so much pressure from powerful interests and their political allies. As musicians and composers, we want to thank you for moving forward with strong net neutrality rules. As so many creators have already noted, reclassification under Title II is the best way to ensure that the Internet remains open for us to build businesses, reach audiences and earn a living in what is a challenging marketplace for creative content.

You certainly have our appreciation. And we urge you to remain steadfast in your efforts to keep the Internet a viable platform for creative entrepreneurs. Without clear and enforceable rules that let us compete alongside the biggest companies, our ability to create and innovate will be threatened, if not extinguished.

Future of Music Coalition met with FCC Commissioner Mignon Clyburn’s staff to discuss so-called “zero-rating”—the practice of excepting certain online applications, sites and services from user-imposed data caps. This ex-parte filing details the conversation and lays out how zero-rating can be used to hinder competition and why it ultimately serves to disadvantage creative entrepreneurs.

We write to you at a crucial moment for net neutrality, as we probably don’t have to remind you. We understand that your position can be thankless and that it is difficult to take a stand for what is right when there is so much pressure from powerful interests and their political allies. As musicians and composers, we want to thank you for moving forward with strong net neutrality rules. As so many creators have already noted, reclassification under Title II is the best way to ensure that the Internet remains open for us to build businesses, reach audiences and earn a living in what is a challenging marketplace for creative content.

You certainly have our appreciation. And we urge you to remain steadfast in your efforts to keep the Internet a viable platform for creative entrepreneurs. Without clear and enforceable rules that let us compete alongside the biggest companies, our ability to create and innovate will be threatened, if not extinguished.

Please don’t be fooled by those trying to turn this issue into a partisan grudge match. Not only do recent polls show that some 80 percent of conservatives back your plan, the creative community—which includes folks of all political dispositions—is equally supportive. The reason is simple: creators of all genres and backgrounds will benefit from the protections your proposal would enshrine. Net neutrality is not only a powerful engine of creative expression and civic discourse, it is the very oxygen of a free and competitive marketplace built on technological and cultural innovation. And artists are drivers of both.

Artists have endured tremendous consolidation in the media marketplace that has limited opportunities for many to reach audiences and earn a living. We are sure that you probably don’t need to be reminded, but we’ll mention it anyway: there is a public interest imperative in preserving an open Internet and the creative sector is a huge part of this interest. It is our creativity that enriches culture and inspires the world in countless ways. The Internet is one of the greatest amplifiers of our contributions to society, and society benefits from access to a diverse array of lawful online content. While we await details of the specific provisions in your proposal, we are confident that you have chosen the proper framework with which to proceed.

We know that you will face political opposition and coordinated attacks from well-funded corporations. But isn’t it cooler to have us on your side than some giant ISP? We think so. And we’ll step up to defend your plan because we know it’s the right call, and we know you understand the importance of making it.

So we thank you, Chairman Wheeler. For listening to our perspectives and making some tough but crucial decisions. Now let’s get this thing over the finish line so that today and tomorrow’s artists can continue to enrich our culture and achieve excellence on our own terms.

WASHINGTON, DC—This week, FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler is expected to circulate his plans to preserve an open Internet where musicians, composers and other content creators can reach audiences without discrimination or interference from a handful of powerful Internet Service Providers.

According to news reports, the proposed rules include reclassification of broadband as a “telecommunications service”—a move that provides for sounder footing to protect content creators and consumers. The FCC will vote on these rules at its February 26, 2015 Open Meeting.

The following statement is attributed to Casey Rae, CEO of Music Coalition (FMC), a national non-profit research, education and advocacy organization for musicians and composers: read more

Here at FMC, we are always happy to shine light on principled positions taken by policymakers. To that end, we recognize Rep. Patrick Murphy (D-FL), who today issued a strong statement in support of net neutrality. Even cooler, he talked about why net neutrality is so crucial to musicians and independent labels: “an open and fair Internet guarantees that independent bands can get to their audiences at the same speeds as those on major labels,” says the congressman. And in the second paragraph, no less!

We also appreciate that Rep. Murphy is in favor of reclassifying broadband internet service under Title II of the Telecommunications Act, which would provide the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) with the light-touch tools it needs to ensure that the Internet works for everyone, and not just a handful of powerful Internet Service Providers like Comcast and Verizon.

From all of us at FMC and the broader music community, we say thanks for taking a stand. Let’s just hope the FCC is listening. The congressman’s full statement is below.

On Wednesday, January 21, as the House and Senate played host to back-to-back hearings on net neutrality, it was clear that there’s been a seismic shift from how these debates have played out in the past.

Where before we’d see allies of Big Telecom claiming that net neutrality was “a solution in search of a problem,” now it seems like almost everyone is eager to paint themselves as allies of the open internet.

This shift in the debate amounts to an accomplishment worth celebrating as it demonstrates the real power of dedicated activist work over the past year, with millions of Americans—including countless musicians and independent labels—speaking out.

But it also comes with real dangers, as many of the same allies of Big Telecom who once fought Net Neutrality outright were now arguing for a new bill that under the guise of a net neutrality “compromise” could actually strip the Federal Communications Commission of its ability to actually protect musicians and other creatives’ ability to connect to their fans without being put in the slow lane.

Lots of news in net neutrality-land over the past couple of weeks. In fact, there’s so much going on right now, that’s its kind of hard to summarize. But we’ll give it a shot.

As you may recall, Federal Communications Commission (FCC) chairman Tom Wheeler recently revealed that the agency would bring new net neutrality rules to a vote on February 26. In a January 7 interview at the Consumer Electronics Showcase in Las Vegas, Wheeler hinted that the rules would be crafted under Title II of the Telecommunications Act—something that FMC and our artist allies have pushed for because they offer the greatest degree of protections for musicians and other content producers, within the strongest legal framework.

House Republicans are rumored to be crafting their own bill, which for the first time would recognize the need to prevent Internet Service Providers (ISPs) from discriminating against lawful online content. This is significant in the sense that it represents a sea change for a party that has long fought against any form of net neutrality. However, it is likely that the proposed legislation is really just a way to stall the FCC from doing what it should and must do: issue clear rules of the road under the light-touch regulatory framework that is Title II.

In other words, this bill might make ginormous ISPs like Comcast happy, but it’s not what is needed to ensure that artists and independent labels have a shot at reaching audiences on their own terms. If Congress is to write a law enshrining net neutrality—which has always been in its purview—the legislation would have to mirror what the FCC already has complete and total authority to do under Title II. So once again to quote Public Enemy: don’t believe the hype. (And tell your Congresspersons not to, either.)

Probably the biggest news this week is a letter to the FCC from mobile telecommunications provider Sprint saying that light-touch regulation under a Title II framework will not harm investment or deployment. This is huge, especially considering the misinformation that has been spread by other telcos about reclassification under Title II—including made-up stories about higher taxes that have been soundly and routinely debunked.